"Akbar, 48, told the Guardian he was attacked just after 8am on Christmas Eve: I opened the door and then a masked man started punching me, after asking are you Shahzad Akbar?' I must have got 25-30 punches on my face. The man seemed trained to do what he was doing: proper footwork like a boxer, going only for my face My children and wife were terrorised and screaming. Akbar says he managed to push the attacker out of his house."
"Counter-terrorism officers took over the investigation from local police. Akbar says that on police advice he and his family moved out of their home and have gone into hiding. On 31 December, Akbar returned to the house for a short visit. Minutes after he left, the second attack took place. Akbar said: Six minutes after my departure, two men were seen on the CCTV, faces covered."
Scotland Yard’s counter-terrorism command is investigating four highly targeted attacks on two Pakistani dissidents living in Britain that may reflect states using criminal proxies to silence critics. One person has been arrested. The attacks began on Christmas Eve and included an incident involving a firearm. The incidents occurred in Cambridgeshire and Buckinghamshire and targeted prominent supporters of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, including human rights lawyer Mirza Shahzad Akbar. Akbar was punched by a masked assailant who appeared trained and inflicted multiple facial blows while his family was terrorised. Police advised Akbar and his family to move out and go into hiding, and Britain’s Foreign Office has faced criticism for not publicly condemning the attacks.
#state-linked-violence #pakistani-dissidents #counter-terrorism-investigation #imran-khan-supporters
Read at www.theguardian.com
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